{"id":1295707,"date":"2026-05-06T11:54:03","date_gmt":"2026-05-06T17:54:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.reporterherald.com\/?p=1295707"},"modified":"2026-05-06T11:54:03","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T17:54:03","slug":"larimer-county-fire-ban","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.reporterherald.com\/2026\/05\/06\/larimer-county-fire-ban\/","title":{"rendered":"Larimer County institutes fire ban, step up from previous restrictions"},"content":{"rendered":"

Larimer County issued a fire ban Tuesday morning amid drought conditions that are expected to continue into the coming weeks despite recent precipitation.<\/p>\n

The ban is a step up from the fire restrictions that the county implemented in March, and prohibit any open fires in unincorporated areas of Larimer County, including in enclosed fire pits or outdoor ovens. Exceptions are made for gas fireplaces, propane grills and \u201canything you can turn off,\u201d according to Larimer County Sheriff\u2019s Department Chief of Emergency Services Justin Whitesell.<\/p>\n

Fireworks are also prohibited under a ban, as is smoking near any combustible material unless inside a vehicle or other enclosed area.<\/p>\n

Whitesell noted that residents might be surprised to see tightening fire rules given the precipitation.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we look out the window, some people might question why we\u2019re talking about a fire ban right now,\u201d Whitesell told the Larimer County Commissioners on Tuesday morning, as snow showers poured outside and heavy snow was in the forecast for Wednesday morning. \u201cWhile there is moisture, it\u2019s not anything significant or that will pull us out of the drought, or offset fire danger for any extended period of time. It\u2019s going to be a short-lived relief that we\u2019re going to see.\u201d<\/p>\n

Temperatures are expected to rise back into the 70s by the end of this week, he said, and this winter, the warmest and driest on record, produced enough drought conditions that a few days of snow wouldn\u2019t be able to reverse the trend towards fire risk.<\/p>\n

The county has already seen three wildland fires since enacting the restrictions in March, Whitesell said, and while all were contained, the incidents demonstrated the risk that dry plant material, high winds and consistently high temperatures pose.<\/p>\n

The Sheriff\u2019s Office will return to the commissioners on May 26 to talk about the fire conditions at that time, including the impacts on fireworks, and consider whether bans should continue.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a weird day for you to be coming here, I think that gives people some false hope,\u201d Commissioner Kristin Stephens said of the precipitation outside Tuesday. \u201cSome of the snow will sink in I suppose, but not enough to make the kind of difference that we need. I looked at the forecast and it could be 80 six days from now, but welcome to spring in Colorado.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stephens also asked what communications were being made to tourists to the area that might be unfamiliar with the fire rules.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m hoping that our tourism boards and groups help us push that message out, because I think the people visiting are more confused about what they can do,\u201d Stephens said.<\/p>\n

Whitesell said that such efforts were underway, including posted information at outdoor retailers like REI and Jax.<\/p>\n

Nearby authorities, such ase Boulder County and the U.S. Forest Service were also considering their own bans, Whitesell said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Sheriff had talked to Boulder County, and they were looking at going to a fire ban, so he felt it was good to get ahead of it rather than waiting,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The ban is a step up from the fire restrictions that the county implemented in March, and prohibit any open fires in unincorporated areas of Larimer County, including in enclosed fire pits or outdoor ovens. Exceptions are made for gas fireplaces, propane grills and \u201canything you can turn off,\u201d according to Larimer County Sheriff\u2019s Department Chief of Emergency Services Justin Whitesell.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":149,"featured_media":860385,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[27,31,3186,3067,25,24,3073],"tags":[],"feature":[],"location":[250,124,253,125,249,255],"type-of-work":[],"coauthors":[3956],"class_list":["post-1295707","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-colorado-news","category-crime-public-safety","category-environment","category-latest-headlines","category-local-news","category-news","category-weather","location-berthoud","location-colorado","location-fort-collins","location-front-range","location-larimer-county","location-loveland"],"post_status":"","edit_last":0,"edit_lock":0,"highlights":"","original_byline":"","original_canonical":"","original_category":"","original_email":"","original_id":0,"original_pubdate":"","original_source":"","primary_section":"25","primary_tag":0,"print_workflow_body":{"deck_headline":"Increased Restrictions","print_title":"Larimer County institutes fire ban","print_subheadline":"Recent precipitation insufficient to reduce fire risk","print_planned_ready":"","print_pub_date":"1778133600","print_slug":"RHC-L-FIREBAN-0507","print_budget_line":"","print_excerpt":"The ban is a step up from the fire restrictions that the county implemented in March, and prohibit any open fires in unincorporated areas of Larimer County, including in enclosed fire pits or outdoor ovens. Exceptions are made for gas fireplaces, propane grills and \u201canything you can turn off,\u201d according to Larimer County Sheriff\u2019s Department Chief of Emergency Services Justin Whitesell.","print_notes":"","photo_limits":"Photo limits are: 1 featured image, 5 featured gallery images, 5 embedded gallery images and 5 in-article embedded images. Articles that exceed these limits will not export. Please adjust images to reflect these limits.","print_featured_gallery_richtext":"","print_inline_galleries_richtext":"","print_inline_images_richtext":"","print_content":"

Larimer County issued a fire ban Tuesday morning amid drought conditions that are expected to continue into the coming weeks despite recent precipitation.<\/p>

The ban is a step up from the fire restrictions that the county implemented in March, and prohibit any open fires in unincorporated areas of Larimer County, including in enclosed fire pits or outdoor ovens. Exceptions are made for gas fireplaces, propane grills and \u201canything you can turn off,\u201d according to Larimer County Sheriff\u2019s Department Chief of Emergency Services Justin Whitesell.<\/p>

Fireworks are also prohibited under a ban, as is smoking near any combustible material unless inside a vehicle or other enclosed area.<\/p>

Whitesell noted that residents might be surprised to see tightening fire rules given the precipitation.<\/p>

\u201cWhen we look out the window, some people might question why we\u2019re talking about a fire ban right now,\u201d Whitesell told the Larimer County Commissioners on Tuesday morning, as snow showers poured outside and heavy snow was in the forecast for Wednesday morning. \u201cWhile there is moisture, it\u2019s not anything significant or that will pull us out of the drought, or offset fire danger for any extended period of time. It\u2019s going to be a short-lived relief that we\u2019re going to see.\u201d<\/p>

Temperatures are expected to rise back into the 70s by the end of this week, he said, and this winter, the warmest and driest on record, produced enough drought conditions that a few days of snow wouldn\u2019t be able to reverse the trend towards fire risk.<\/p>

The county has already seen three wildland fires since enacting the restrictions in March, Whitesell said, and while all were contained, the incidents demonstrated the risk that dry plant material, high winds and consistently high temperatures pose.<\/p>

The Sheriff\u2019s Office will return to the commissioners on May 26 to talk about the fire conditions at that time, including the impacts on fireworks, and consider whether bans should continue.<\/p>

\u201cIt is a weird day for you to be coming here, I think that gives people some false hope,\u201d Commissioner Kristin Stephens said of the precipitation outside Tuesday. \u201cSome of the snow will sink in I suppose, but not enough to make the kind of difference that we need. I looked at the forecast and it could be 80 six days from now, but welcome to spring in Colorado.\u201d<\/p>

Stephens also asked what communications were being made to tourists to the area that might be unfamiliar with the fire rules.<\/p>

\u201cI\u2019m hoping that our tourism boards and groups help us push that message out, because I think the people visiting are more confused about what they can do,\u201d Stephens said.<\/p>

Whitesell said that such efforts were underway, including posted information at outdoor retailers like REI and Jax.<\/p>

Nearby authorities, such ase Boulder County and the U.S. Forest Service were also considering their own bans, Whitesell said.<\/p>

\u201cThe Sheriff had talked to Boulder County, and they were looking at going to a fire ban, so he felt it was good to get ahead of it rather than waiting,\u201d he said.<\/p>"},"print_workflow_exported_ts":"1778090127","print_workflow_exported_username":"Pamela Johnson","print_workflow_shapes":"","print_workflow_side":{"print_section":"3061","print_status":"3047","add_export_buttons":"","print_endpoint":"pmp","print_publication":"","print_add_to_budget":""},"really_short_title":"Larimer fire ban","short_title":"","syndication_source":"","market_neutral_title":"","social_title":"","dfm_hub_post_id":0,"paywall_level":"","wp_post_sync_subscribers":["eptrail","contenthub"],"last_syndication_payload_sent_via_nats_to":[],"last_syndication_payload_sent_via_nats_at":0,"last_syndication_payload_received_via_nats":false,"last_syndication_payload_received_via_nats_at":0,"featured_media_content":{"content_type":"image","content":{"id":860385,"title":"TDP-L-CAMERON_PEAK_FIRE_465","filename":"TDP-L-CAMERON_PEAK_FIRE_465.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.reporterherald.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/TDP-L-CAMERON_PEAK_FIRE_465.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.reporterherald.com\/2025\/03\/02\/colorado-wildfire-risk-forest-service-job-cuts-impact-firefighting\/tdp-l-cameron_peak_fire_465-5\/","alt":"Heavy Smoke and flames rise from ...","author":"2","description":"LARIMER COUNTY, COLORADO – OCTOBER 5: Heavy Smoke and flames rise from the Cameron Peak fire as the fire continues to burn on October 5, 2020 in Larimer County near Fort Collins, Colorado. 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